SteveAJones
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Although it wasn't said specifically that the photo was part of any of the groups listed in that post, here is the full picture
located at: http://www.the-presidents.org.uk/Photo%20Gallery.htm
Thanks as always, Jeff. I didn't know where Royston got the photo from, but it seemed to me it wasn't taken while they were performing together given the presence of the
other stringed instrument.
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Lots of interesting stuff here, Steve. Thanks. I'd like to track down those TV appearances in 1960 and 1963.
I as well. It's a longshot, but perhaps we can narrow it down to the actual station(s) and start making inquiries with whomever maintains the tape vaults, if in fact they
still exist. It reminds me that Mick Jagger's father was a physical education instructor and there is a late 50s clip of he and Mick demonstrating athletic techniques. It has
been found, as I recall.
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Jimmy Page at ABC Trust Charity Event
Bartrams Brewery in Bury St. Edmunds
circa 2002 (date unconfirmed)
www.bartramsbrewery.co.uk
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Courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive
An interview with Mr. Dietler concerning this album is no longer possible...
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Jimmy Page & Royston Ellis (Late 1960-July 1961)
Photo courtesy of Royston Ellis
This from Royston Ellis:
"I did performances of rock and roll poetry - rocketry - with the future founding member of Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page from Late 1960 to July 1961. Jimmy took over from The Shadows who became in demand after the success of their single “Apache”. Only three of these performances have been confirmed within those nine months:
• TV show with Jimmy, late 1960, on Southern Television (from Southampton, with Julian Pettifer)
• 4 March 1961, HERETICS society of Cambridge University
• Sunday 23 July 1961, the Mermaid Theatre, London"
“I gave Jimmy Page his first stage and TV shows when he backed me reading my poetry...”
“This was after my stage and TV appearances with The Shadows, because they became so in demand, I had to find other musicians…”
“I appeared on television with Jimmy on Southern Television from Southampton, with Julian Pettifer, in late 1960.”
(In fact, Jimmy Page already appeared on television with The J.G. Skiffle Group, performing two Skiffle numbers on Huw Wheldon's 'All Your Own' talent quest programme).
“We did other shows together, too, in the 1960s…there was one to the HERETICS society of Cambridge University on 4 March 1961 and another at the Mermaid Theatre, London, on Sunday 23 July 1961 which was just Jimmy and myself on stage as part of an evening of poets and actors (Ralph Richardson, Flora Robson, etc) reading works…”
“I used to appear with Jimmy alone (not with the group in which he played then, the Red Cats and managed by Chris Tidmarsh who later emerged as Neil Christian) although I think we may have recruited a bongo player for some dates…”
“Jimmy was sitting down in the background while I was lecturing.”
About that time, Jimmy Page was lead guitarist in a rock 'n' roll band called Red-E Lewis & The Red Caps and that was managed by Chris Tidmarsh who later emerged as singer “Neil Christian” fronting his Crusaders that also included Page on guitar. Tidmarsh was the guy who had shown Ellis how to use the Vick inhaler (see Royston Ellis & The Be"A"tles)…
“Yes, the Vick inhaler story has become part of drug legend. I was shown how to do that by a singer who later became Neil Christian and his guitarist, who used to accompany me in those days, Jimmy Page.”
The previous line up of the Red Caps left Red-E Lewis to team up with black singer Cuddy Duddley then emerged as the new version of Johnny Kidd’s Pirates from July 1961 to early 1962 and featuring lead guitarist Johnny Patto, bass player Johnny Spence and drummer Frank Farley.
By 1961, the “New Red Caps” were Jimmy Page on guitar (using the stage name of
“Nelson Storm” after the 18th century admiral), “Jumbo” Spicer on electric bass and Jim “Tornado” Evans on drums.
In addition to being the lead guitarist of the Red Caps, Page used to back Royston Ellis in a different way from his illustrious predessors, The Shadows and The Beatles. Page and Ellis were just accompanied on stage with a bongo player. This couple of musicians backed Ellis reading sequences of poems from his first book “Jiving To Gyp” and “Rave”, released in 1961.
“Jimmy composed his own music to back my poems - usually ones from JIVING TO GYP although I might have been performing the one with the line "Easy, easy, break me in easy" from RAVE. The Mermaid show was the peak - and possibly the final one - of our stage performances.”
After their final stage performance together, at the Mermaid Theatre, London, in July 1961, they finally parted company and Jimmy Page toured throughout Britain with the Red Caps who had fallen out with Red-E Lewis and then became The Crusaders backing Chris Tidmarsh aka “Neil Christian”. Page began his career of recording session musician with Neil Christian & The Crusaders, on their first singles, released in late 1962 and summer 1963, just after he left them because of his delicate health. Jimmy Page met up Royston Ellis once again in Guernesey in 1963…
“I remember that Jimmy visited me when I was in Guernsey in early 1963 and we did a TV interview on Channel TV….We are still in touch and have met several times during the past decades... we are still firm friends...”
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Hmm. I shall have to look into this a bit further, as when I go from memory I'm often mistaken. It could well have been the Cleveland gig that was broadcast
I've reconfirmed it was Cleveland (5/11/86) recorded for radio to promote The Firm's tour and Dayton (10/21/88) to promote the Outrider tour. Cheers!
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I witnessed The Firm live three times.
Which gigs...which tour?
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I'm simply telling a story the way I heard it. But let me say this. He does have (did have) ties here in New Orleans and he was seen on several occasions at bars around Fat City in Metairie in the 80's. That's were he met his wife Patricia Ekerd. The girl who told me this particular story was not a bullshitter and she had no reason to make it up. And to add up on my end, I wouldn't post anything as ridiculous as it sounds without some sort of good source. It's a crazy story, I agree but drugs do funny things to people (he was on heroin if you read between the lines) That's cool if you don't believe it-but don't say it's bullshit- I would't post it. That also makes me a bullshitter which I'm not.....I have other great stories of this era, but you may not believe them either.
Sorry, but there is no evidence to suggest Jimmy was using heroin beyond 1983, the year he confided in others he had kicked the habit. However, he was charged with cocaine possession during the rehearsals for The Firm's first world tour in Autumn 1984.
Getting back to Page sightings in Lousiana, radio station WCKW reported he was seen playing darts at Dino's Rock Box (3619 8th Street) in New Orleans two days prior (March 16th 1990). I presume he and
Patricia were visiting her side of the family. James Jr. would have been 23 months old at the time.
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I recall the Cleveland gig being a live simulcast on Westwood One.I listened to it here in NC.Jimmy was great that night and I tried to tape it but my machine fucked up.I'm sure that anyone could have gotten a decent recording... I tried to get my friend in Cleveland to go see it but he was really sick at the time.He still regrets not going.
Hmm. I shall have to look into this a bit further, as when I go from memory I'm often mistaken. It could well have been the Cleveland gig that was broadcast, but almost
certainly not as a live simulcast -- Superstars In Concert was always pre-recorded
and the shows were cut down to fit the 90 minute format, as is the case with the
bootleg. I have this very vague recollection of Jimmy himself having approved the
final mix of the mastertapes whilst on the east coast but again...going from memory.
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No offence my friend, but it's " stories " like this that get told and then retold and on and on until they get believed by some. Interesting to read, somewhat , whatever turns your crank. On a scale of believability -------
It's possible. New Orleans (3/24/85) was the last gig of the first leg of the tour, which
did not resume for two weeks (4/11/85) and it is known Jimmy elected to stay in New Orleans for at least a few days:
Jimmy and Tony Franklin walked in on Mason Ruffner's set at the Old Absynthe House on Bourbon Street, where they were introduced. He turned down Mason's offer to jam but gave him tickets to the Firm's concert. The after-show party was at a local bar called In Through The Out Door. Later that week Jimmy joined Mason two nights in a row to jam, proving he did stay in town beyond the end of the first leg of the tour. As I recall
he met Patricia Ecker (a waitress) around this time too.
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Boleskine House
Boleskine Burial Ground
Photographed June 4, 1987
Photo Credits: Steve A. Jones
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Courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive
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Courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive
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I have a few "shows" from The Firm in my collection. The best for sound quality and performance (from what I've heard so far) is Cleveland 1986. It doesn't get much better than that. It's good enough by far to be an official release.
As I recall, the "Cleveland" bootleg actually features their Hara Arena (Dayton, OH) gig
(5/9/86) recorded by Westwood One for a Superstars In Concert radio broadcast later
that summer. The Cleveland gig was postponed a day (someone who was on the tour told me Jimmy was food-poisoned at an Oriental restaurant after the Dayton concert) and performed on Mother's Day. A special section was reserved to allow free admission
to Mother's attending with their children (I'm not kidding!).
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Concert Review: The Firm live at Wembley Arena, May 22, 1985
Published in The Times (London) May 24, 1985
Courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive
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Pop Rock March 16th, 1985 (Canada)
Courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive
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I saw the Firm in concert back in the 80's in Wichita, KS. It was a great concert and I remember how excited I was to see Jimmy!
That was at the Civic Center on March 2nd 1985, and it was actually just their second
performance in the states, having opened the North American leg of their world tour two nights prior at the Reunion Arena in Dallas.
A concert preview was published the day prior in the Wichita Eagle-Beacon; the article
is titled "Firm's Resume is Impressive". I'm still seeking a copy should anyone have it.
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Live in '85
Photo courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive
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Thanks for all your efforts Blocoboy!
Yes, these discoveries are phenomenal!
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I've been doing more digging in the archives. I now show the 7/20/68 gig Page, Dreja & Grant attended was at a "teacher's training college" in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire. Robert discusses his recollection of this in a circa-1988 interview with Chris Tetley and during the SXSW Festival in Austin in 1995.
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Can anyone confirm the dates of Robert's association with The Brumbeats?..I have a few pieces relating to them but they are from late '64 into 1965 and I don't want to post them if they are not relevant.
I show it was for a brief period in 1963 between stints with The New Memphis Bluesbreakers and Sounds of Blue.
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This might be a silly question but has anyone asked Robert Plant if he recalls anything about the Walsall gig.
Peter Grant recalled they met him at the door prior to the gig and mistook him for a roadie. I don't think Peter was ever very specific regarding the venue, simply using
the old standby "a teacher's training college near Birmingham"...
Then there is the 1973 Zig Zag magazine interview with Jimmy Page during which he
says they saw him perform with ..."Obstweedle or Hobbstweedle or something..."
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I read in an old fanzine that Bonzo played with Tim Rose at "The Factory," a Birmingham nightclub on 8/3/68. Plant allegedly attended this show to convince Bonzo to join the "New Yardbirds." This certainly could have been Bonzo's last gig with Rose since he went down to Jimmy's Pangborne boathouse soon thereafter.
Very interesting, as Bonzo recalled he had agreed to tour with Chris Farlowe following the end of the UK Tour with Tim Rose. Perhaps Chris Farlowe can (or already has) recalled Bonzo dropping out on very short notice, seeing as Zep's first rehearsal on Gerrard Street is believed by many to have been 8/12/68.
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I believe that the date was first published by Greg Russo in his Yardbirds biography.
Oh, Crikey that explains it then. I collaborated with Greg on that book regarding the
Page Concert Chronology and Dreja's recollection is indeed from whence the date comes. There is no evidence to substantiate it (yet) so far as I know.
Robert Plant - Pre-Zep History
in Pre / Post-Zeppelin Forum
Posted
Robert has said his first "gig" was attending a Wolverhampton Wanderers match with his
father in the late 50s, so it's known he was an avid fan during this era. I don't know if
they had a "logo" similar to this in the 60s.
Wolverhampton Wanderers nearly ruined my marriage - Robert Plant
May 25 2008 By Lorne Jackson
Sunday Mercury
He's the Black Country football team's most famous fan. Rock star Robert Plant has always been a hardcore supporter of Wolverhampton Wanderers. Now he has revealed exactly why he follows the club - he loves the pain.Plant also admitted that watching the Molineux team, who narrowly missed out on a play-off place this season, placed a huge amount of pressure on his marriage.
The former Led Zeppelin frontman said: "I know what I'm doing every other Saturday is masochism, and it's the nearest thing to actually walking under a bus.
"Well, I suppose it is a bit like a religion, but I don't carry the crucifix right through the weekend these days, although I used to."
The tousle-haired rock icon, went on to admit that his love of the beautiful game led to some ugly scenes in the marital arena.
Plant, who was married from the late 60s until the early 80s said his fever for footy wasn't always appreciated at home.
"It played havoc with my marriage for a while," he said. "When we won the League Cup in 1974, it took me three days to get home from Wembley to Worcestershire.
"I haven't got a clue where I was. "I know the Mayor of Wolverhampton received the team in official form, and I remember being there for a minute or two."
Many other famous rock stars have also been fanatical about footy.
Rod Stewart supports Manchester United, Celtic and Scotland, while Elton John backed Watford both emotionally and financially.
Yet Plant, who was born in West Bromwich and was brought-up in Halesowen, is the most fervent fan of all.
During Led Zeppelin's heyday in the 1970s the band undertook gruelling foreign tours.
But Plant would always appear on the terraces for crucial matches.
The 59 year-old, who is currently touring with country singer, Alison Krauss, admits he always got a wow out of Wolves.
"It's the love of something where I don't have to be explaining myself, justifying it; being a spook on the edge," he said. "I'm right in the middle of it, and I love it to death. And it's right and it's wrong and it's banal."
Plant also said he enjoyed the fact that he could be totally anonymous while watching Wolves.
Which wasn't the case in most other places in the western world during the 70s.
He said: "It's insane, but it's a panacea for me. I used to go to the South Bank in the early 70s, and I'd be there with 15,000 other people chain-smoking Woodbines, and I was just getting over the fact that if I went to some other place on the planet, I would have to have security.
"But instead of that, I was on somebody else's shoulders, falling through the crowd.
"I nearly broke my leg when we beat Man City at Wembley in that League Cup Final."
Plant, who made his comments during an interview with Recorder Collector Magazine, also admitted he isn't just a Wolves fan.
He also loves the comedy of... Frank Carson.
The hard-living rocker said the Irish gagmeister regularly led him to a Stairway To Heaving Chuckles.
He even hopes that Frank will attend his 60th birthday bash.
"I want to see if I can get a good deal on him coming out for a drink with me for a couple of hours," he said. "I don't think I'd want him for the whole evening, though, because after about 45 minutes, he may just start again."
He added: "He's hilarious. I just like somebody to keep giving me some daft jokes."